Piedmont.... Again

[OPECJet]

You don't remember taking all the FL plates out of your Jepps a few months ago?

Those days are long gone. The days of CLT are almost gone too.

Can't really blame PDT. Its the b@stards in Crystal City who ruin all the fun for everyone.

 

[91100 100 set]

btw, i've run into plenty of surly/unpleasant people in the south, and lots of nice personable folks up north, so that whole "we're nicer in the south" thing is malarkey, theres good people, and jerks all over


i doubt it will ever be what it was in it's heyday (boy were those the times, eh, 90,100, and learlove?)

I knew a guy in college from Washington who did an internship with Express One in Memphis. After school started in the fall, we were asking him what he thought of Memphis. The first thing he was "you know what they say about southern hospitality, well, it's a big bunch of $%&@!"

And yes, Dash8, those were the days... I miss the overnights in PWM, ITH, and YUL. I miss the rescheduling premium (170 hours of pay in May of 2000). I miss the 4 hours of pay credit for a SYR-BDL-SYR roundtrip that was only 3.5 hours of duty. I miss the Dinosaur, Crossroads, my old place, going out on Bernie's boat, getting flashed by KT, the whole deal.

 

[WSurf]

lol, Just because you pull your jepps out doesnt mean crap. I have had a bunch of airports pulled out, only to have them replaced 4 months later. So that really doesn't mean crappola.

I do believe CLT will be done (PSA closing PHL and moving many more pilots to CLT), and now with the rumor of AirWisky opening PHL, DCA and now I hear ORF... hmmmm

I see that most of our flying shifted north... however I do believe US Airways realizes they screwed up bad by getting the Dash's out of Florida. Look who replaced us, and the service they provide... not very good.

There were 3 ALG Dash's parked in SBY that were on the ramp for about a year. They are now in maintaince and getting them airworthy to fly. I believe two of the 3 will be on line again soon as told to us by maintaince.

 

[OPECJet]

I'm hearing now that CLT will hover around 10 or 11 lines. That'll leave me as a junior line holder, but barely.

I was pleasantly surprised with my July schedule. All but one trip commutable on both ends. Almost like when I first got to CLT. We'd have back to back 3 days with enough time between the two to go home in the middle. Talk about recharging the batteries.

True about the plates. It would be nice to get another revision putting them all back in. Even nicer to actually go back down there.

 

[PA31Ho]

What bases did they have in Florida?

 

[OPECJet]

JAX and TPA

 

[PA31Ho]

lol that would be nice...

can anybody answer this... How long do they usually give you before you know when you have a class date? Also, when do you find out where you are going to be based?

Thanks

 

[lear24]

From the recent hires I've spoken with, it was about 2 months from the interview to class date. They found out their bases the second week of class, it depends on when the company puts out and awards a base bid after you're part of the list.

 

[PA31Ho]

Well, they sure don't give you a lot of time to move to a base do they? 2nd week of training and you still dont' know where you are going to live? wow... Well I was told to expect either an August or September class. But I want to know how long of a notice I will get before class starts.

 

[TreyBien]

PA31HO how much TT do you have now?

 

[PA31Ho]

725/305

 

[Prop2Jet]

I am applying 4 sure!
Any word on recent flight time required?

 

[OPECJet]

The more the better.

 

[PA31Ho]

If you went to Riddle or UND then you're an easy in if you have under 1000. Apply and get in!!!

 

[PA31Ho]

How long is training at Piedmont anyway?

 

[lear24]

PA31HO-

You don't necessarily have to move to your domicile, in fact, I wouldn't recommend it at first, especially right now, with bases shifting around so much. You just have to be there when it's time to work. After training is done, you are entitled to 3 days off to get things in order in domicile before you are required to work out of it. It's not a lot of time, you're right, welcome to the industry. As far as notification before class starts, I don't know, but I'd be ready to boogey with a week's notice if I were you. Good luck.

 

[Dash8]

with only 7 fo's bidding up to syr, i would imagine the class graduating the closest to the beginning of september will all be sent to SYR

a few words of advice...
don't be tools, everyone going up there is pretty cool to work with, no uptightness for the most part (with a couple of exceptions maybe)

don't be 'joe cool airline pilot' if you have all these super lofty ideals of being an 'airline pilot', meaning bravado and lack of humility, you'll have a good time

 

[PA31Ho]

naaah... I'm reall not too bothered where I get based, I'm thinking of moving to CLT and commuting out of there.

 

[OPECJet]

I wouldn't recommend commuting to anyone new to PDT. It just flat sucks. I've done it from day one, and don't get to spend much time at home at all. I'm CLT based, and it's still miserable. If you're in the other bases, most of trips aren't commutable. They start early and end late. You end up going to wherever the night before your trip, and don't get back until the day after. Turns a 3 day into a 5 day. Commuting on reserve is even worse.

You get your 3 post SOE days, then 4 move days when you want them. If you don't have any ties anywhere, move to your domicile. Take the 3 days after SOE to have a beer or three, then find an apartment. Next month, take the 4 days to move your crap. If you space those 4 days between days off, you'll end up with about a week to move. Very doable in my opinion.

Also, the company owes you a hotel room your first night in base. That's another big help. All you have to do is tell scheduling its your first night and you need a room. They will fax over the authorization. If you don't ask, they WILL leave you hanging. (Same goes for the other parts of the contract they like to ignore until you bring it to their attention.)

Move to your domicile, and you will most likely enjoy this place once you get the hang of it. Commute, and you will have one more reason to hate it.

 

[olympus593]

with only 7 fo's bidding up to syr, i would imagine the class graduating the closest to the beginning of september will all be sent to SYR

a few words of advice...
don't be tools, everyone going up there is pretty cool to work with, no uptightness for the most part (with a couple of exceptions maybe)

don't be 'joe cool airline pilot' if you have all these super lofty ideals of being an 'airline pilot', meaning bravado and lack of humility, you'll have a good time

Thanks for the advice...

 

[lear24]

In regards to how long training takes, it depends on a lot of factors, but I believe the minimum to finish all groundschool and sim sessions would be about 5 weeks, but it could stretch out to 6-7 weeks depending on how big the class is, how many instructors are available, etc. This time frame doesn't include IOE, which varies for everyone and depends on what trips they can squeeze you into.

I agree with the advice about attitude, no one here likes cockiness, but everyone is accepting of new guys and even new guys with very few hours. If you're willing to learn and be cool, you will get along with everyone. If you're the cocky know it all, been there, done that 500 hour type, it will be an odd fit.

 

[olympus593]

During training watch out for Mr J.P...

 

[FlyingToIST]

725/305

Where did you get the chance to fly those hours? I am not bashing you, just curious.. Thanks..

 

[PA31Ho]

Network during my flight training... meet the right people that will take you under their wing.... kinda like what happened to me. I was flying left seat in a Navajo before I even had my commercial multi. Now I fly a 421 out of Charleston, SC.

 

[Superpilot92]

Charleston, i overnighted there the other night. Good overnight. Went downtown and had BBQ. Good place.

 

[Elvis77]

Anyone have Dave Okst phone number or Todd Worden phone. I use to work here and I am trying to get a hold of them. They are both captains at Piedmont. If you do, please PM me. Thanks